22 Operating Systems Practice Questions & Answers

1. 1. A technician is formatting an internal drive for a Windows workstation that must enforce permissions on individual files and recover its metadata quickly after an unexpected power loss. Which file system meets both requirements?

   • A.FAT32, which keeps two allocation tables and applies a single permission set to the whole volume
   • B.NTFS, which journals its metadata changes and stores an access control list on every file✓ Answer
   • C.exFAT, which drops journaling to reduce overhead and leaves access control to the host system
   • D.APFS, which journals by way of snapshots but enforces its permissions only on macOS volumes

   NTFS records metadata changes in a journal before committing them, so an interrupted write can be rolled forward or back at the next mount, and it stores a discretionary access control list on each file and folder. FAT32 is tempting because it is universally readable, but it has no journal and no per-file security descriptor at all, so a FAT32 volume cannot enforce user-level permissions.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, common file system types and their properties; Microsoft NTFS documentation on metadata journaling and file permissionsReport a problem with this question

2. 2. A user cannot copy a single 6 GB video file to a 64 GB USB flash drive formatted as FAT32, although the drive reports plenty of free space, and the drive has to stay writable on both Windows and macOS. What should the technician do?

   • A.Back up the drive and reformat it as exFAT, which both systems write to and which has no 4 GB file cap✓ Answer
   • B.Split the file into parts smaller than 4 GB, which leaves the user rejoining them after every transfer
   • C.Delete other files to free more space, which does nothing about the limit the file system imposes
   • D.Back up the drive and reformat it as NTFS, which removes the cap but which macOS mounts as read-only

   FAT32 records file size in a 32-bit field, so no single file can reach 4 GB no matter how much free space the volume has; exFAT was designed for flash media, lifts that limit and is read/write on both Windows and macOS without extra drivers. NTFS also lifts the limit, which is why it tempts, but macOS mounts NTFS read-only without third-party software, so the drive would stop being usable on the Mac.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, file system types including FAT32 and exFAT; Microsoft documentation on the FAT32 maximum file sizeReport a problem with this question

3. 3. A technician prepares a 6 TB drive as the boot disk of a workstation with UEFI firmware. What does choosing GPT instead of MBR actually determine?

   • A.How quickly the disk reads, because GPT aligns every partition on a larger block boundary
   • B.How the partition table addresses the disk, which lets all 6 TB be used and lets UEFI boot it✓ Answer
   • C.Whether the volume can be encrypted, because the recovery key is held in the GPT header
   • D.Which file system each partition receives, because a GPT disk is always formatted as NTFS

   The partition style is a property of the partition table only: MBR addresses at most about 2 TB and allows four primary partitions, while GPT addresses far larger disks, allows many more partitions and is what UEFI firmware requires in order to boot. Encryption tempts because BitLocker needs particular partitions, but the recovery key lives with the encryption metadata and with the account or domain that escrows it, never in the GPT header.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, partitioning with GPT and MBR; Microsoft documentation on UEFI boot requirements and partition table limitsReport a problem with this question

4. 4. On a Debian-based Linux workstation an application will not start because shared libraries it needs are absent. What does installing the application through the distribution's package manager accomplish?

   • A.It compiles the application from source and links the missing libraries into one static binary
   • B.It copies the missing libraries out of the kernel module directory into the application folder
   • C.It reads the package's declared dependencies and pulls the missing libraries from the repositories✓ Answer
   • D.It installs the package and writes out a list of missing libraries for the administrator to fetch

   A package manager such as apt reads the dependency metadata inside the package, resolves what else is required and retrieves those packages from the configured repositories, which is exactly why installing from a repository avoids missing-library failures. Building from source tempts because it can indeed produce a working binary, but that is a manual compilation workflow, not what the package manager does, and it still needs the development libraries present first.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Linux package management tools; Debian documentation on package dependency resolutionReport a problem with this question

5. 5. A workstation has to move to a newer Windows release while the user's installed applications, personal settings and documents stay in place. Which approach does that, and why?

   • A.A clean install, because the installer wipes the volume and rebuilds the user profile from scratch
   • B.An image deployment, because a standard image is applied over whatever the disk held before
   • C.An in-place upgrade, because the installer preserves applications, settings and data on the volume✓ Answer
   • D.A reset from the recovery partition, because it returns the machine to its shipped configuration

   An in-place upgrade installs the newer release over the existing installation and migrates applications, user accounts, settings and data, which is the only listed path that preserves all three. A clean install tempts when the machine is also slow or unstable because it produces the healthiest result, but it removes applications and settings and requires everything to be reinstalled and restored afterward.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, installation types including in-place upgrade and clean install; Microsoft Windows deployment documentationReport a problem with this question

6. 6. A technician is about to reinstall Windows on a laptop using the recovery partition built into its system drive. Which step has to come first?

   • A.Clear the firmware supervisor password, because the recovery partition cannot load while it is set
   • B.Defragment the system volume, because the recovery image needs contiguous space to expand
   • C.Delete the existing partitions, because the recovery image will only write to unallocated space
   • D.Copy the user's files and settings to separate media, because the reinstall clears the volume✓ Answer

   Reinstalling from a recovery partition rewrites the system volume and removes installed applications and, in most modes, user data, so backing that data up to separate media and verifying the backup is the non-negotiable first step before any clean install, image deployment or recovery reinstall. Deleting the partitions tempts because a clean install can do that during setup, but doing it first would destroy the recovery partition the technician intends to use.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, recovery partition and upgrade considerations including backing up files and user preferencesReport a problem with this question

7. 7. A workstation has to boot from a USB installer, but it keeps starting Windows from the internal disk instead. Where does the technician change the order in which devices are tried?

   • A.In the firmware setup utility, which is opened with a key press during the power-on self-test✓ Answer
   • B.In Device Manager, by disabling the internal disk controller until the installer has finished
   • C.In Disk Management, by marking the USB volume active and the internal system volume inactive
   • D.In the System Configuration tool, by moving the removable device above the Windows entry

   Boot order is a firmware setting, so it is changed in the BIOS/UEFI setup utility entered with a vendor key during power-on self-test, before any operating system loads; many systems also offer a one-time boot menu that serves the same purpose. The System Configuration tool tempts because its Boot tab does list boot entries, but those are Windows boot loader entries on an already-booted system and cannot make the firmware try the USB device first.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, boot methods including USB and the firmware boot device orderReport a problem with this question

8. 8. A user reports that the desktop takes several minutes to become usable after signing in, although the machine responds normally once it has settled. Where should the technician look first?

   • A.The Performance tab of Task Manager, to raise the priority given to the desktop shell
   • B.The Services tab of Task Manager, to stop every service currently reported as running
   • C.The Users tab of Task Manager, to sign out accounts that hold memory in the background
   • D.The Startup tab of Task Manager, to disable the high-impact programs that load at sign-in✓ Answer

   Programs registered to launch at sign-in all compete for disk and processor at the same moment, which is the classic cause of a long delay that clears once loading finishes, and the Startup tab shows each item with its measured startup impact so it can be disabled. Stopping running services tempts because services also load early, but many are required by Windows itself and stopping them indiscriminately destabilizes the system without addressing the per-user startup items.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Task Manager tabs including Startup, Services, Performance and UsersReport a problem with this question

9. 9. A drive returns intermittent read errors, and the technician wants a scan that locates physically bad sectors and recovers whatever data is still readable in them. Which command does that?

   • A.diskpart with the clean command, which erases the table but does not map bad sectors
   • B.chkdsk with the /r switch, which scans the disk surface and recovers readable data✓ Answer
   • C.sfc with the /scannow switch, which repairs protected system files but not the surface
   • D.chkdsk with the /f switch, which repairs file system errors without testing the surface

   The /r switch locates bad sectors on the physical surface, recovers readable information from them and marks them so they are not reused, and it includes the file system repair that /f performs. The /f switch tempts because it is the everyday repair option, but it only fixes logical file system errors such as lost clusters and cross-linked files and never tests the media itself.

   Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Microsoft command-line tools including chkdsk and its switchesReport a problem with this question

10. 10. The network team asks a technician for the physical address of a workstation's wired adapter so it can be added to a filter list. Which command displays that value?

    • A.netstat -a, which lists the active connections and the ports the machine is listening on
    • B.ipconfig /all, which lists the physical address of every adapter along with its addressing✓ Answer
    • C.ipconfig /renew, which asks the server for a fresh lease and shows the address it granted
    • D.hostname, which prints the computer name the workstation registers when it joins a network

    The /all switch expands ipconfig output to the full per-adapter detail, and the media access control address appears there as the physical address, alongside the DHCP, DNS and lease information. Using ipconfig /renew tempts because it also prints adapter output, but its purpose is to request addressing from the DHCP server, and its summary output does not include the physical address.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Microsoft command-line networking tools including ipconfig and its switchesReport a problem with this question

11. 11. A user can reach an internal server by its address but not by its name. Which utility queries the DNS server directly and reports which server answered and what it returned?

    • A.nslookup, which sends the query to the configured server and prints the record that it returned✓ Answer
    • B.ping, which sends echo requests to the host and reports how long the replies take to return
    • C.netstat -r, which prints the routing table the workstation consults to choose an interface
    • D.tracert, which lists each router along the path between the workstation and the destination

    nslookup sends a name query straight to the resolver the client is configured to use and shows both the answering server and the record returned, which separates a name resolution failure from a connectivity failure. ping tempts because it accepts a host name and appears to test the name, but a failed ping cannot tell the technician whether the name went unresolved or the host simply did not answer.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Microsoft command-line networking tools including nslookup, ping and tracertReport a problem with this question

12. 12. A workstation that should receive its address from DHCP shows 169.254.12.40 and cannot reach anything, and the DHCP server is confirmed to be running. Which commands should the technician run next?

    • A.ipconfig /all and then ping 127.0.0.1, to read the current lease and test the local protocol stack
    • B.ipconfig /release and then ipconfig /renew, to drop the current lease and request a new one✓ Answer
    • C.ipconfig /flushdns and then ipconfig /displaydns, to clear and then list the resolver cache
    • D.netstat -r and then tracert 8.8.8.8, to read the routing table and trace the path out of the site

    An address in the 169.254 range is automatic private addressing, which a Windows client assigns only when no DHCP server answered, so the fix is to discard the failed configuration with /release and force a fresh discovery with /renew. Flushing the DNS cache tempts because name resolution is also broken, but the client has no usable address at all, so clearing cached records cannot restore connectivity.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, client-side IP configuration and the ipconfig release and renew switchesReport a problem with this question

13. 13. A standard user runs the system file checker and is told that the command has to be run from an elevated prompt. Why does that scan require elevation?

    • A.It runs only once the volume has been dismounted, which a standard account cannot schedule
    • B.It restarts the machine into Safe Mode first, which a standard account is not permitted to do
    • C.It replaces protected operating system files, a change only an administrator is allowed to make✓ Answer
    • D.It writes its results into a log file that a standard user's profile has no permission to create

    The scan verifies protected system files against known-good copies and overwrites any that are corrupted, and writing into protected system locations is an administrative operation, so the process needs the elevated token. The log explanation tempts because the tool does write a log, but that log lands in a protected system folder as a consequence of elevation rather than being the reason elevation is required.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, the sfc command and Windows administrative privilege requirementsReport a problem with this question

14. 14. A workstation with limited RAM slows badly once many applications are open, and disk activity stays high for as long as they remain open. What is the operating system doing?

    • A.Compressing the page file on disk, which raises processor use every time memory is read back
    • B.Caching the entire page file into memory, which leaves even less RAM for the applications
    • C.Writing memory into the hibernation file, which it refreshes on a fixed timed schedule
    • D.Moving inactive pages of memory out to the page file, which the disk serves far more slowly✓ Answer

    Virtual memory lets the system commit more memory than is physically installed by writing least-recently-used pages to the page file and reading them back on demand, and because storage is orders of magnitude slower than RAM, heavy paging shows up as constant disk activity and sluggishness. The hibernation answer tempts because that file also holds memory contents, but it is written once when the machine hibernates, not continuously while applications run.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Windows performance settings; Microsoft documentation on virtual memory and the paging fileReport a problem with this question

15. 15. After a driver installation destabilizes a workstation, a technician uses System Restore to roll the machine back to an earlier restore point. What does that operation revert?

    • A.System files, drivers and registry settings, while the user's personal documents are left alone✓ Answer
    • B.The user's personal documents to earlier versions, while the installed drivers are left alone
    • C.The entire volume back to the factory image, while data on other volumes is left in place
    • D.The firmware settings and boot order, while the registry and installed drivers are left alone

    A restore point captures system state, meaning system files, installed drivers, registry settings and some application installations, and rolling back to it undoes those changes while deliberately leaving documents, pictures and other user data untouched. The idea that it restores personal documents tempts because users expect a rollback to be total, but recovering an earlier version of a document requires file history or a backup, not System Restore.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems and Software Troubleshooting domains, System Restore and recovery options in WindowsReport a problem with this question

16. 16. An administrator opens an administrative tool and is still prompted to approve the action before it will run. Why does an account that already holds administrative rights get that prompt?

    • A.The tool is signed by a publisher this machine does not trust and needs manual approval
    • B.The account runs with a filtered standard token until the user approves the elevation✓ Answer
    • C.The account has to be approved by the built-in Administrator before any tool will open
    • D.The account's password must be re-entered on the schedule that local policy defines

    User Account Control gives an administrator two tokens and runs everything with the filtered standard-user token by default, so any task needing full rights raises a consent prompt that switches the process to the full administrative token; a standard user gets a credential prompt instead. Untrusted publisher signing tempts because it changes the wording and color of the dialog, but the prompt appears for signed Microsoft tools too, so the cause is the token split rather than the signature.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Security domain, User Account Control and running programs as administrator; Microsoft documentation on the UAC filtered tokenReport a problem with this question

17. 17. A group is granted the Read share permission on a folder and the Modify NTFS permission on the same folder. What can a member of that group do when connecting to the folder across the network?

    • A.Read the files, because the more restrictive of the two permission sets is what applies✓ Answer
    • B.Modify the files, because the file system permission always overrides the share permission
    • C.Nothing at all, because a conflict between the two permission sets denies access outright
    • D.Modify the files, because the two permission sets are combined and the broader one wins

    When a folder is reached over the network both permission sets are evaluated and the effective permission is the intersection, so the most restrictive of the two wins and a Read share limits a user who has Modify at the file system level. Believing the NTFS permission overrides the share tempts because NTFS is the more granular of the two and is the only one that applies to a local sign-in, but across the network the share permission still caps what the user gets.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Security domain, NTFS versus share permissions and effective permissions in WindowsReport a problem with this question

18. 18. A file carrying custom NTFS permissions is moved to another folder on the same volume, and a second copy of it is placed in a folder on a different volume. What happens to the permissions?

    • A.Both files inherit the destination permissions, because each write creates a brand new object
    • B.The moved file inherits those of the destination folder; the copy keeps its own permissions
    • C.Both files keep their original permissions, because the descriptor travels with the file data
    • D.The moved file keeps its own permissions; the copy inherits those of the destination folder✓ Answer

    Moving a file within one NTFS volume only rewrites the directory entry, so the existing security descriptor stays with the file, while copying creates a new file at the destination that inherits the destination folder's permissions; a move to a different volume behaves like a copy for the same reason. Assuming both keep the original permissions tempts because the file contents look identical either way, but a copy is a newly created object and is stamped with inherited permissions.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Security domain, NTFS permission inheritance when files are moved and copiedReport a problem with this question

19. 19. A technician clears the inheritance checkbox in a folder's advanced security settings, and Windows offers either to convert the inherited entries or to remove them. What is the difference between the two?

    • A.Converting turns each Allow entry into a Deny; removing turns each Deny entry into an Allow
    • B.Converting copies those entries up to the parent; removing pushes them down onto the children
    • C.Converting keeps those entries as explicit ones; removing leaves the folder with an empty list✓ Answer
    • D.Converting transfers ownership to the technician; removing hands ownership to the built-in group

    Converting writes the entries the folder was inheriting into its own access control list as explicit entries, so effective access is unchanged but the parent no longer drives it, whereas removing discards them and leaves only whatever explicit entries already existed, which is often none. Removing tempts as the cleaner choice, but on a folder with no explicit entries it can lock out everyone except the owner and administrators until new permissions are added.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Security domain, NTFS permission inheritance and explicit access control entries in WindowsReport a problem with this question

20. 20. A shell script on a Linux workstation is set to mode 750. What access does that mode grant?

    • A.The owner may read, write and execute; the group may read and execute; others get nothing at all✓ Answer
    • B.The owner may do anything; the group gets nothing at all; others may read and execute it
    • C.The owner may read and write; the group may read and execute; others may read and execute
    • D.The owner may read, write and execute; the group may read and write; others may only read

    Numeric modes add read as 4, write as 2 and execute as 1 for each of owner, group and others, so 7 is read plus write plus execute, 5 is read plus execute, and 0 is no access at all. The option granting group read and write tempts because 5 and 6 are easily transposed, but 6 would mean read plus write with no execute, which would stop group members running the script at all.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Linux file management commands including chmod and numeric permission modesReport a problem with this question

21. 21. A Linux user who is authorized to perform administrative tasks needs to run one single command with elevated rights, without signing in to the root account. What should the user do?

    • A.Apply chmod to the command file so that every account on the system may execute it
    • B.Prefix the command with su and authenticate using the password of the root account
    • C.Apply chown to the command file so that the current account becomes its owner first
    • D.Prefix the command with sudo and authenticate using the user's own account password✓ Answer

    sudo runs a single command as the superuser after the invoking user authenticates with their own password and is checked against the sudoers configuration, which keeps the root password out of circulation and leaves an audit trail of who ran what. su tempts because it also produces a root session, but it requires the root password itself and switches the whole shell rather than elevating one command.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, Linux administrative commands su and sudoReport a problem with this question

22. 22. A macOS user downloads an application that arrives as a .dmg file. What is the normal way to install it?

    • A.Expand the image with Archive Utility, then move the resulting folder into the Library folder
    • B.Open the image so that it mounts, then run the setup program it places in the Utilities folder
    • C.Open the image so that it mounts, then drag the application bundle into the Applications folder✓ Answer
    • D.Open the image in Disk Utility, then use Restore to write the application onto the boot volume

    A .dmg is a disk image that mounts as a volume when opened, and the standard distribution pattern is an application bundle inside it that the user drags into the Applications folder, after which the image can be ejected and deleted. Looking for an installer wizard tempts because Windows software works that way and because macOS does have a package installer format, but a disk image containing an application bundle is installed by the drag-and-drop copy.

    Source: CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam objectives, Operating Systems domain, macOS application installation from .dmg, .pkg and .app filesReport a problem with this question

Practice questions written to the published CompTIA A+ Core 1 and Core 2 exam objectives and to standard IT support practice. CompTIA and A+ are marks of CompTIA; this site is not affiliated with or endorsed by CompTIA. The exam objectives are revised periodically — confirm the current objectives and exam requirements with CompTIA before testing. About the CompTIA A+ certification →